Premier is refusing to take anti-trans positions despite pressure to do so
When a picture was taken of a man in a green “straight pride” shirt with Premier Danielle Smith at the Stampede, Albertans saw what they wanted to see.
People who didn’t like Smith and the grinning guy’s shirt thought the message was disrespectful to the struggles that led to the LGBTQ movement, and they thought a premier might have been trying to signal that she agreed with the message.
At least for those who liked the shirt’s message, there was nothing wrong with the shirt or with being proud to be straight. Then, they yelled when a premier they usually supported said she supports the LGBTQ community, hadn’t read the guy’s shirt, and “obviously doesn’t agree with its message.” In a way, it’s an apology.
The guy who wore the shirt was a good example of the online backlash she got from that side. The next week, he told a YouTube interviewer, “I’m pretty sad that she gave in.”
The place where he was being interviewed is telling: at a rally called “Leave Our Kids Alone” for Calgarians who don’t want to talk about LGBTQ issues in schools or help young people change their gender. A speaker at a rallypraisedThe “straight pride” guy and criticized the premier’s statement distancing herself from the shirt’s message, even though the speaker claimed to “love” Smith and asked others to give her a chance.
Even though this is a small protest, it is part of a bigger movement among right-wing people around the world, where Premier Smith usually moves.
Right-wing activism and political policies are getting more and more against transgender rights and the chance for young people to get care that fits their gender identity or be protected from discrimination. It includes podcasts by Jordan Peterson and many others.freedom convoy movement, to anti-trans bills in several Republican states like Florida and South Carolina, as well as a controversial policy in New Brunswick.
Online influencers on the right,convoy protestors, She met with Republican governors and conservative premiers.celebratesAnd the people she stands with on a lot of issues.
She was 100% on their side when they fought against COVID rules and forced vaccinations. But when this movement moved toward actions that caused division and more angry talk about LGBTQ and especially trans issues, Smith took the exit.
She doesn’t fit the right-wing stereotype that critics have made up about her.
Whether it’s because of political pragmatism, personal relationships, or her own “live and let live” libertarian philosophy — or, more likely, a complex mix of all of these things — she’s not going to the polarizing place where so many other politicians with similar views have gone.
Inaction pla
On the other hand, her government hasn’t done much or made many promises to improve or roll back protections for the communities.past policy reformsJason Kenney led the United Conservative Party to power. Smith’s only action that can be seen was to keep Lacombe–Ponoka MLA. Jennifer Johnson was kicked out of her party’s caucus after it came out that, when she was running for office, she hadpublicly compared trans kids to feces in food.
But this lack of action is also a kind of resistance to what’s going on in other conservative parts of North America—especially when compared to what Premier Blaine Higgs has done.contentious reformsTo student pronoun policy in New Brunswick schools, or the ban on gender-affirming care for minors, or the “Don’t Say Gay” law on classroom instruction.in Florida, whose Governor Ron DeSantis the premier of Alberta has praised, likes.
In fact, Smith has flatly refused to use more provocative language about transgender issues when asked or almost forced to do so.
When an Alberta separatist group co-sponsored the UCP leadership race to replace Kenney last August, the moderator asked about gender diversity in the classroom, surgery, and trans athletes. Brian Jean and Todd Loewen, who were running against each other, were more forceful and got more applause for their answers about school policy and strict biological gender rules in sports. Smith was much less clear, and he even tried to change the subject.
Smith said, “I have a non-binary family member, and I think these are very personal decisions that shouldn’t be discussed in public.” “We shouldn’t make any child feel like the problems they’re having are a political football.”
Smith did say that there should be some thought about who can play in women’s sports, but she was careful enough that Jean later took a shot at her in a fundraising letter: “Danielle Smith was the only candidate in attendance who said biological men should be allowed to play in some cases.”
Peterson v. Smit
Smith did a podcast interview with Peterson, the well-known social critic, a few weeks after he became prime minister in the fall of last year.famous for opposingPreferential gender pronouns andperennially rails on trans issues.
After the psychologist asked a long question about identity politics and family norms in society, Smith emphasized how important it was for conservatives to make the coalition big and open. She liked how many gay conservative staffers there were and how much the public liked same-sex marriage and having kids.
“In fact, a transgender woman is in charge of ourchief firearms officeSmith told Peterson, “I live in Alberta.”
“I’m very proud of how welcoming the conservative movement is, and I want to keep it that way,” she told the interviewer, who has a history of being biased.at odds with that concept.
At a Medicine Hat forumDuring the provincial election in May, Smith kept going in this direction. He complained about “10 years of polarization” on LGBTQ issues and said that adults should be “supportive” of kids as they figure out who they are and how they feel about themselves.
She also said that her chief of staff is gay and that one of the communications staffers in the premier’s office is also an outreach officer who meets with LGBTQ groups and youth leaders (though her office wouldn’t say which ones).
When a reporter asked her about the New Brunswick policy this month, Smith said she wished everyone would “depoliticize” it.
She said, “I think it’s very bad for kids to see this happening in public.”
Corinne Mason, an associate professor of women’s and gender studies at Mount Royal University, said that some on the right are worried about accommodating young people’s gender transitions or making them feel safe as they deal with these changes. But Smith doesn’t seem to be one of them.
They said, “Maybe she’s not as afraid of the change in the population as the people who are saying these really mean things about trans people right now.” “She thinks there might be a chance to grow the conservative base because she sees a change and other people are doing their classic “stand your ground” thing.”
Mason also shows how the premier doesn’t really help the LGBTQ community, even though she says she wants to do so. Mason pointed out that Smith never takes the chance to say how she’ll better protect rights or young people, or to strongly condemn outrageous acts like that “straight pride” shirt, Jennifer Johnson’s comments, or the protests at drag events.
Mason said that the alarmism and threats against trans people mean that now is not the time to back down, but to act.
They said, “This is a political time.”
Core beliefs, base belief
One wonders, though, how far Smith can go without causing divisions within the UCP base, which includes a lot of social conservatives and people who might not have seen much wrong with a “straight pride” shirt.
In October, UCP members voted by a large majority to pass apolicy resolutionTo make it easier for parents to support their child’s gender identity, but the Smith government hasn’t done anything to make that happen.
At a “Leave Our Kids Alone” rally last month, David Parker, who is in charge of the UCP pressure group Take Back Alberta, went off about LGBTQ issues.
“We won’t be scared until this way of thinking is gone from our schools,”he said.
A lot of Smith’s time as leader of the Wildrose Party was spent worrying about these things. An Edmonton candidate’s comments that gay people would go to hell in a “lake of fire” hurt her 2012 election campaign, and Smith’s refusal to punish him for them did not help. She foughtmending fencesWith the community by going to Pride events, but toward the end of her time as leader of the Wildrose Party, party members got rid of a law that made it harder for gay people to get married.statement on equal rightsSmith’s stance gets a sharp rebuke from people of all sexual orientations.
Mercedes Allen, who helped start the Trans Equality Society of Alberta, remembers meeting Smith back when she was with the Wildrose Party. Allen remembers that Smith had said she wanted to be a friend to LGBTQ people, including trans people.
She said, “I think that she really meant it.” “On the other hand, you can’t just say you’re an ally. Someone has to show that and keep their word.”
Allen was upset that Smith took several days to decide what to do about the UCP candidate in Lacombe’s blatantly anti-trans comments. Insiders of the party think that Smith and caucus will let Johnson back into the UCP, even though they initially kicked her out. This would anger many in the LGBTQ community.
A broad mandat
In a mandate letter, Smith told Culture Minister Tanya Fir to keep “supporting and engaging with members of Alberta’s Francophone and LGBTQ+ communities.”
Requests to talk to Fir, Smith, and Nick Kalynchuk, who is in charge of outreach, were turned down. Fir said in a statement that “the 2SLGBTQQIA+ community still faces discrimination and targeted violence” and that “Alberta’s government will work tirelessly to make sure we build safe communities where everyone is free to be their true authentic selves.”
It’s not clear what any of this will mean for policy, but Smith has shown no sign that he wants to follow the wishes of the Jordan Petersons, David Parkers, and Ron DeSantises of the world on this issue.
In the next few months, there will be Pride festivals in both Edmonton and Calgary. Smith’s presence or absence at these events will say a lot, but people on both sides of a controversial issue will want to know what Smith has to offer them beyond gestures and words.